This application relates to, and incorporates by reference the entire disclosure of, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/862,362.
Each year, roughly 14 million women worldwide suffer from postpartum hemorrhage, defined as blood loss exceeding 500 mL, making it one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality following childbirth. Severe postpartum hemorrhage, involving blood loss in excess of 1000 mL, occurs in approximately 3% of all vaginal deliveries and a large number of caesarean deliveries. See e.g. Janice M. Anderson and Duncan Etches, Prevention and Management of Postpartum Hemorrhage, 75 μm. Family Physician 875-882 (Mar. 15, 2007). Complications may include infection, hypotension, anemia, fatigue, hemorrhagic shock and ultimately death. Id. There were, according to World Health Organization statistics, approximately 132,000 deaths worldwide due to postpartum hemorrhage in 2011 and, accordingly, there is an ongoing need for treatments that rapidly and effectively stanch uterine bleeding.
Common causes of postpartum hemorrhage include uterine atony, coagulopathy, retention of placental tissue, and genital tract trauma. Different treatments may be indicated for each of these causes—for example, uterine massage may be indicated for postpartum hemorrhage due to uterine atony, while closure of lacerations may be indicated for hemorrhage due to trauma—and the process of identifying a cause and selecting a suitable treatment therefore adds complexity and potentially delays the delivery of treatment. Moreover, in developing or rural environments, the availability of treatments for postpartum hemorrhage across the spectrum of causes may be limited. Accordingly, a need exists for systems and methods for treating postpartum hemorrhage that can be rapidly deployed and are useful in treating the condition across the full spectrum of its causes.